About me
Experienced and dedicated researcher with experience in identifying efficiencies and problem areas within research streams while communicating needs for projects.
Employment History
Honorary Consultant, Centre for Chronic Disease Control, New Delhi, India
Feb 2025 — Present
- Data Management and Analysis.
- Usage of generative AI API framework in data cleaning.
- Data Harmonisation.
- Writing research papers and reports.
- Collaboration with the project team.
- Worked for the various studies and datasets: CARRS, PCARRS, UDAY, LASI, DISHA, NFHS, DHS-4, SAGE-1-2, WHO-STEPS.
Biostatistician, Public Health Foundation of India, India
May 2024 — June 2025
- Worked on the Project titled "Global Health Research Center for Multiple Long-Term Conditions-NIHR Grant".
- Help conceptualize and plan research activities under the Centre.
- Conduct literature review and contribute to research design.
- Oversee data collection, identify errors in data and coordinate with the team members to correct the errors.
- Clean the data and prepare data sets for analysis and storage.
- Author statistical analysis plan and perform statistical analysis using appropriate methods.
- Prepare reports of the interim and final analysis.
- Contribute to writing manuscripts, reports and policy briefs.
- Collaborate with partners based in India, Nepal and the UK.
- Contribute to capacity building efforts of early career researchers affiliated with the Centre.
- Supervise PhD students.
- Deliver short courses on statistical methodology.
- Perform any other task assigned by the PI/Supervisor.
Research Associate III, Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, PGIMER, Chandigarh, India
August 2023 — April 2024
- Worked on the Project titled "Effect of Millet Consumption on the Cardio-Metabolic Health in Punjab".
- Initiated and led stakeholder engagement sessions with community members, frontline workers, and local officials to identify barriers to millet consumption in Punjab.
- Applied participatory and systems-sensitive approaches to co-develop problem definitions and context-specific intervention strategies.
- Developed and refined survey tools based on stakeholder input, incorporating ecological and systemic determinants of dietary behavior.
- Facilitated feedback loops with stakeholders throughout intervention planning and delivery—paralleling group model building principles.
- Coordinated field logistics and ethical documentation with sensitivity to power dynamics and cross-sector collaboration.
- Data management and analysis
Consultant, Micronutrient Forum (USA), Remote
May 2022 — June 2022
- HMIS and NFHS-5 Data analysis for COVID impact assessment on healthcare services.
- Retrieving HMIS & COVID data from the web portal.
- Data Cleaning and Analysis.
- Merging COVID data with HMIS services delivery.
- Plotting the time series of service delivery.
- Separating Data based on Months and Indian States.
- Assisting in Presentation and Data Interpretation.
- Used Python for Data Analysis.
Education
PhD (Nutrition), Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, PGIMER, Chandigarh, India
July 2019 — April 2025
ICMR-Senior Research Fellow at the Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health
Thesis Title: Gene-based nutritional intervention in prevention and control of type 2 diabetes: A randomised controlled trial.
NUDGE (Nutritional intervention for Diabetic GEnes) Trial
CTRI Reg. No.: CTRI/2021/09/036121
- Designed and implemented a randomized controlled trial evaluating personalized nutrition strategies based on genetic profiles for diabetes prevention.
- Led the development of trial protocol, participant recruitment strategy, consent process, and data collection tools (including dietary recalls and biomarkers).
- Managed full-cycle clinical data acquisition, including anthropometric and biochemical measurements, DNA extraction, and SNP analysis using qPCR.
- Conducted statistical analysis using R, STATA, and Python to evaluate intervention outcomes; ensured data integrity, reproducibility, and compliance.
- Oversaw research logistics, team coordination, ethical approvals, and trial registration, demonstrating strong project management.
- Published multiple first-author articles from trial findings in peer-reviewed journals and presented work at international conferences.
- Development of Windows Application using Python
- Support in community-based awareness events and assisted in academic lectures
M.Phil. Biological Anthropology, Department of Anthropology, University of Delhi, New Delhi, India
July 2017 — July 2019
Thesis Title: "Reproductive Performance and its Association with Cardiometabolic Risk Factors: A Case-Control Study among Bhil Women of Rajasthan, India".
- Used participatory and ethnographic methods to engage tribal communities in identifying local health challenges.
- Applied early systems-thinking frameworks to analyze multi-level drivers of reproductive and metabolic health disparities.
- Integrated community-generated insights into research instruments.
- Experienced in navigating culturally complex, multi-stakeholder field settings—essential for successful facilitation.
- Research writing and Data analysis
M.Sc. Anthropology, Hansraj College, University of Delhi, New Delhi, India
July 2015 — July 2017
Dissertation Title: "Fingerprints of Males and Females of Tadvi of Village Khadagada and Bhil of Village Pan-Talavadi, Tehsil Nandod, District Narmada, Gujarat".
- Human Genetics, Human Evolution, Anthropometry, Biostatistics, Dermatoglyphics, Ergonomics, Population Studies, Epidemiology
- Field Visits
- Dissertation Writing
- Data analysis
- Laboratory Skills
- Research Writings
B.Sc. Life Science, Ramjas College, University of Delhi, New Delhi, India
July 2012 — July 2015
- Zoology, Botany, Chemistry, Mathematics, Biostatistics, English
Skills
- Project Management
- Precision Nutrition
- Public Health Nutrition
- Biostatistics
- Neo4j, Graph & Vector rag
- Generative AI
- qPCR
- DNA Extraction
- Anthropometry
- Intravenous Blood Sampling
- Data Management
- Dashboard Development
- GitHub, Python, R, & STATA
- Google Earth Engine
- ArcGIS
- Adobe Photoshop
- Adobe Premiere Pro
- Languages: English, Hindi
Published/Accepted Research (Last 5 years)
- Jose, A.P., Kaushik, A., Tange, H., van der Weijden, T., Pandey, N., Sharma, A., Sheikh, R., Ali, N., Kushwaha, S., Kondal, D., Chaturvedi, A., Prabhakaran, D (2024). Redesigning telemedicine: preliminary findings from an innovative assisted telemedicine healthcare model. BMC Primary Care, Volume 25, article number 380 (IF: 3.2)
- Srivastava, R., Halder, P., Khanna, P., Kushwaha, S.* (2024). Assessment of egg quality, food safety, and hygiene practices among commercial and non-commercial farms of Barwala district of Panchkula, Haryana. Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care, Volume 13(11):p 4949-4956 (IF: 1.0)
- Tharu, R., Ahlawat, G. M., Kushwaha, S., & Khanna, P. (2023). Gut microbiota disparities between active Crohn's disease and healthy controls: A global systematic review. Clinical Epidemiology and Global Health, 101497.(IF: 2.5)
- Kushwaha, S., Srivastava, R., Bhadada, S. K., Khan, N., Mondal, A., & Khanna, P. (2023). Interaction between micronutrients and lipid profile in prediabetes and diabetes among school-aged children (5–9 y) in India. Nutrition, 115, 112172.(IF: 4)
- Kushwaha, S., Srivastava, R., Bhadada, S. K., & Khanna, P. (2023). Prevalence of pre-diabetes and diabetes among school-age children and adolescents of India: A brief report. Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice, 110738. (IF: 6)
- Khanna, P., Kaur, M., Varma, N., Sharma, S., Sehgal, R., Singh, T., Srivastava, R., Kushwaha, S., & Jain, R. (2023). Impact of Community Based Nutrition Intervention in the Prevention and Control of Anaemia Among Reproductive Aged Women of India. Maternal and Child Health Journal, pp.1-7. 10.1007/sl0995-023-03656-x (IF: 2.5)
- Kushwaha, S., Srivastava, R., Jain, R., Sagar, V., Aggarwal, A.K., Bhadada, S.K., & Khanna, P. (2022). Harnessing machine learning models for non-invasive pre-diabetes screening in children and adolescents. Computer Methods and Programs in Biomedicine (Elsevier), 107180. Doi:10.1016/j.cmpb.2022.107180 (IF: 6.5)
- Srivastava, R., Kushwaha, S., Khanna, P., Gupta, M., Bharti, B., & Jain, R. (2022). Comprehensive overview of smartphone applications delivering child nutrition information. Nutrition (Elsevier), 111773. Doi:doi.org/10.1016/j.nut.2022.111773 (IF: 4)
- Kushwaha, S., Khanna, P., Jain, R., Srivastava, R. (2021). Determining the nutritional immunity information-seeking behaviour during the COVID-19 pandemic in India: a Google Trends data analysis. Public health Nutrition (Cambridge Core). 1-12. Doi:10.1017/S1368980021003232 (IF: 5)
- Kushwaha, S., Khanna, P., Rajagopal, V., Kiran, T. (2021). Biological attributes of age and gender variations in Indian COVID-19 cases: A retrospective data analysis. Clinical epidemiology and global health (Elsevier). 11, 100788. Doi: 10.1016/j.cegh.2021.100788 (IF: 2.5)
- Kushwaha, S., Mishra, J., & Mondal, P.R. (2021). Obstetric history and its Association with Cardiometabolic Risk Factors: A Case-Control Study among Bhil Women of Rajasthan, India. Anthropological Review, 84 (1), 75-85 (2021) Doi: https://doi.Org/10,2478/anre-2021-0004 (IF: NA)
Pre-prints
Published Books/Chapters
- Kushwaha, S., Khanna, P., Srivastava, R. (2021) Food Security Management Strategies: A Perspective from COVID-19 Era. Chapter - 4, Vol - 1; 47-58. In Book: Nutrition as a key to Covid-19 Resilience in India. ISBN - 978-81-212-2048-4
- Srivastava, R., Khanna, P., Kushwaha, S., (2021) Impact of Covid-19 on Infant and Young Child Feeding Practices in India. Chapter - 2, Vol - 1; 21-33. In Book: Nutrition as a key to Covid-19 Resilience in India. ISBN -978-81-212-2048-4
Research Work Presentations
- Presented Review work titled "Prevalence of malnutrition and risk of malnutrition among elderly in India: A systematic review and meta-analysis", 26th October 2025, AIIMS Rishikesh, Rishikesh, India
- Presented Research work titled "Effect of gene-based precision nutrition on fasting blood glucose levels in type 2 diabetes: An open-label randomised controlled trial", 23rd August 2024, Cambridge Diabetes Seminar 2024, Clare College, University of Cambridge, UK
- Presented Poster on the topic "Framework for Precision Nutrition in Diabetes" in the Seminar "Nutrition Evidence Synthesis for Biomarker Discovery", 5th March 2024, Organised by Cochrane India, New Delhi, India
- Presented Poster on the topic "Gene-Based Holistic and Conceptual Framework for Personalised Nutrition in Diabetes: A Comprehensive Multidimesnional Approach" at the Micronutrient Forum 6th Global Conference, 16th Oct to 20 Oct 2023, organised by Micronutrient Forum, The Hague, The Netherlands
- Presented Poster on the topic "Gender Disparities in Micronutrient Status among Adolescents in India: Evidence from a Large-Scale National Survey" at the "Global Indian Young Scientists Research and Innovation Conference 2023 on 10th May to 2nd June 2023, organised by Vigyan Bharti and All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA), New Delhi
- Presented Research work (Oral) on the topic "Interaction between lipid profile and serum ferritin in prediabetes among school age children (5-9 years) in India" at the 25th Annual Conference of North Zone Chapter, Indian Association of Preventive and Social Medicine" on 10th-11th December 2022, organised by AIIMS, Bhatinda.
- Presented Research work (Video Presentation) on the topic "Interaction between lipid profile and urine iodine in pre-diabetes & diabetes among school-age children (5-9 years) in India" at the 2nd International Conference on "Food Science and Nutrition: Leading the way towards SDGs" on 17th-18th November 2022, organised by Scientexconference in Paris, France.
- Presented Review work (Oral) on the topic "Research trends and hotspots of tobacco research in India: a bibliometric analysis" at the 5th NCTOH Conference on the topic “Multisectoral convergence for tobacco free India by 2030: Leading the way towards SDGs" on 26th September 2021 organised by Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, PGIMER, Chandigarh, India.
- Presented e-poster titled "Impact of Community Based Nutrition Interventions on Anaemia among Reproductive aged Women in District Fatehgarh Sahib, Punjab" in 48th Annual IAPSMCON on "Public Health in 21st Century: Current Challenges and Future Opportunities"19th - 21st March 2021 organised by Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health and Department of Internal Medicine, PGIMER, Chandigarh, India.
- Presented Research work on the topic "Reproductive performance and its association with Cardiometabolic Diseases: A case-control study among Bhil Women of Rajasthan, India" in the National seminar on "Health Policy Research: Current Scenario" 15th March 2019 at the Department of Anthropology, University of Delhi, Delhi, India
- Presented Review work on “Digital India: Transforming Higher Education and Interdisciplinary Research" in the National seminar on "Breaking Boundaries of Research in Higher Education"- 14th - 15th October 2017 at Faculty of Performing and Visual Arts, Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla, India.
- Presented Research work on the topic “Study of Fingerprint patterns among Bhil of Gujarat" in the National seminar on "Role of Anthropology and Forensic Science in national Development" 24th -25th March 2017 at the Department of Anthropology, University of Delhi, Delhi, India
Personal Projects Portfolio (GitHub)
- Nutrition & Diet Advisor Based on Gen AI and Vector RAG (Public URL)
- Multifunction Chat-Bot Based on multiple Gen AI models (Private Repo)
- AutoRev (To automate literature review using Gen AI) (Private Repo)
- Data Analysis Agent (To automate data cleaning using Gen AI) (Public Repo)
- MScreD (Machine Learning Based Screening in Diabetes) (Public Desktop App)
Peer Review Works (Last 2 years)
- Reviewed One manuscript for "Nature Scientific Reports" (Scopus)
- Reviewed One manuscripts for "Frontiers in Nutrition" (Scopus)
- Reviewed Two manuscript for "Medicine" (Scopus)
- Reviewed Five manuscripts for "Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism" (Scopus)
- Reviewed manuscript for "Family Medicine and Community Health Journal" (Scopus)
- Reviewed manuscript for "BMJ Open" (Scopus)
- Reviewed Four manuscripts for "Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism" (Scopus)
Workshop/Training/CME/Courses Attended
- Short Course on Quantitative Health Research Methods and Biostatistics, Offline, (PHFI), 6th-9th May, New Delhi, India
- Causal Modeling for Environmental Epidemiology, Offline, (Harvard T.H. Chan & PHFI) New Delhi, India - January 2023
- Mathematics for Machine Learning: Linear Algebra (coursera), Online - October 2022 — January 2023
- Statistical with Python (coursera), Online - January 2022 — July 2023
- Introduction to Food & Health (Standford University), Online - January 2022
- Applied Genetic Epidemiology in Nutrition research (University of Reading), Online - October 2021
- EndNote Training Series (Clarivate), Online - April 2021
- Health Econometrics, Chandigarh, India - March 2021
- Online Basic nutrigenetic training, Online - May 2020
Seminar/Webinar Attended (Past 5 years)
- Attended the 12th India Probiotic symposium on the topic "Good Microbiome, Probiotics, and Good Health - The Evidence Gets Stronger" on 5-6 March 2022, organised by Gut Microbiota and Probiotic Science Foundation (India).
- Attended e-Conference (5th NCTOH) on the topic "Multisectoral convergence for tobacco-free India by 2030: Leading the way towards SDGs" on 25-27 Sept. 2021, organised by the Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, PGIMER, Chandigarh, India.
- Attended webinar on the topic "How to publish in Medical Journals" on 22nd Jun 2021, organised by Tylor and Francis group.
- Attended Anthropometry webinar on the topic "Obesity phenotypes from BMI to MRI throughout the life course" organised by the University of Cambridge - Biomedical Research Centre in February 2021 (1 Month).
- Attended 8th virtual meeting of Diabetes in Asia Study Group on 14th and 15th January 2021.
- Attended online conference titled "The first national conference of maternal, infant and young child nutrition national working group of Indian association of preventive and social medicine" on 16th and 17th October 2020, organised by the Indian association of preventive and social medicine (IAPSM) in collaboration with Alive and Thrive, India.
- Attended webinar on the topic "Support Breastfeeding for A Healthier Planet" on 7th August 2020, organised by the Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, PGIMER, Chandigarh, India.
- Attended webinar on the topic "Eliminating trans-fats from oils/fats and foods" on 5th August 2020, organised by GHAI, SIPHER, and Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, PGIMER, Chandigarh, India.
- Attended seminar on the topic "Hypertension: Prevention and Management" on 15th February 2020, organised by the Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health and Department of Internal Medicine, PGIMER, Chandigarh, India.
Fellowships, Awards, and Travel Grants
- 1st Prize for research publication under PhD category on 11th Annual Research Day - 22nd March 2025, organised by PGIMER, Chandigarh, India.
- Cambridge Travel Grant for attending "Cambridge Diabetes Seminar- 2024"
- 2nd Prize for research publication under PhD category on 10th Annual Research Day - 3rd February 2024, organised by PGIMER, Chandigarh, India.
- SERB (Science and Engineering Research Board) India Travel Grant for attending conference (6th Micronutrient Forum Conference) at The Hague, The Netherlands (16th Oct 2023 to 20th Oct 2023).
- Recognition for outstanding performance in Quiz during an online workshop titled "Applied Genetic Epidemiology in Nutrition research" on October 29-31, 2021, organised as an unseparated agenda of World Class Professor 2021, Alma Ata University, Indonesia.
- 2nd Prize for research publication under PhD category on 8th Annual Research Day - 22nd Oct. 2021, organised by PGIMER, Chandigarh, India.
- 1st Prize in a rapid oral presentation titled "Research trends and hotspots of tobacco research in India: a bibliometric analysis" during the 5th NCTOH Conference.
- 3rd Prize in an e-poster presentation titled "Impact of Community Based Nutrition Interventions on Anaemia among Reproductive aged Women in District Fatehgarh Sahib, Punjab" during 48th Annual IAPSMCON.
- Indian Council of Medical Research - Junior Research Fellowship (For PhD in India) - 2018
- University Grant Commission - Junior Research Fellowship (For M.Phil. and PhD in India) - 2018
Memberships
- Micronutrient Data Innovation Alliance (DlnA) - October 2022 — Present.
- Epidemiology Foundation of India - Lifetime Membership - No. 03135